Mel Jacker
Here’s Melanie role playing as a federal air marshal during a recent flight attendant training course.
Week in Review
I figure it’s about time for me to make another posting since it’s been a while. It’s been a busy week, that’s for sure. First news is, I’m finally staffed on a project. I’m working for a customer down in Hopewell, NJ. Not the ideal location but the project works looks like fun. After more than two years with Avanade, I can finally excited about a project.
This project definitely will challenge me. I’ll be working on a piece of a integration framework with Microsoft. System level coding using the System.CodeDom and System.Xml.* namespaces with some reflection here and there. Without a doubt, I will be learning a lot on this engagement. Heck, I have already learned a lot this week alone. And my favorite .NET feature of the week is the System.CodeDom namespace. Being able to generate code in different languages is so cool.
At the home front, our blinds finally arrived. It’s bee a month since we ordered them but it was worth the wait. They look super nice in the apartment. And now Melanie can change clothes in the bedroom instead of hiding in the hallway or bathroom.
Wedding plans are coming along. We have a trip to Bryn Athyn planned for next weekend. We are hoping to get a lot done. And Dave is hard at work organizing my upcoming bachelor party to be held the first weekend in September in viva Las Vegas baby!
And finally, the WASTED Crew has been talking this week about the next WASTED trip. That and the WASTED movie has me dreaming of snowboarding once again. Skateboarding is fun and I am enjoying it, but it ain’t like riding a snowy slope. Think I might have to buy a new board this year too. But first, we have to pay for the wedding and honeymoon.
That’s it for the week in review. It’s a glorious day in New York. I’m sitting out on the fire escape enjoying the weather as I type waiting for Melanie to return from Brussels. Hopefully you are outside as you read this. And if you’re not then stop reading, shut off the computer and go play outside!
WASTED II: The Movie available for download
After slaving away for half a day, I finally completed my first ever movie. WASTED II is now The Movie. Re-live all the excitement and fun of this past season’s WASTED trip.
Note: This is a 4 MB file so it will take some time to download on slower Internet connections. I also have a high resolution version that will be available soon on CD.
Skate and Skateboarding
This weekend was the return to the skateboard for me. I have not been on a skateboard, aside from my freebord which is a different type of skateboard all together, in more than 20 years. But I finally broke down, bought a new board, and hit the Hudson River Park. And to add to the excitement, Melanie decided to buy a pair of in-line skates. So now we can ride together down the Hudson.
One other thing. I want to be a bit better at skateboarding. I’ve only gone out twice now and both times were for only an hour or so. But darn it, I want to be better. Tricks seems so easy in my dreams. It should be that easy in real life.
If you want to see some folks who do make it look easy in real life, check out the Dogtown and Z-Boys video. These guys know how to ride. The moves they do are just sick. I can’t imagine carving the concrete as low to the ground as these guys get.
SnowReport Service Passes WS-I Test
WS-I.org recently published a set of test tools for XML Web services. These tools test for conformance with the WS-I’s Basic Profile. For fun, I decided to test my Snow Report Service.
WS-I Testing Tools - Beta Release
WS-I has published a beta version of its comformance test tools. This version will test for version 1.0 of the Basic Profile. Note: You will need the .NET Framework version 1.1.4322 if you plan to use the C# version of the test tools.
WASTED Wear Arrived Today
My latest order of WASTED Wear arrived today. The WASTED hoodie rocks! It’s comfy and the print job is nice. Not as nice as the t-shirt given away in Whistler but still nice. The golf shirt is okay but the logo is a little low for my liking. And the shirt quality is only so so. The baby doll shirt looks good though. Can’t wait for Melanie to try it on.
Season is Over
My snowboard season is finally over, and it ends with me wanting more. This weekend in Killington was one of the best times on the slope for me this season. And to add to the great snow, the weekend was made a bit better by spending time with the Davis’s. The turkey was delich and the ham was more than heavenly. But this posting is about the snow.
Saturday was overcast and warm with slope side temps in the 50’s. The snow was soft with lots of nice banks on the bumps. Saturday felt like surfing over and over without having to wait for the perfect wave. The half pipe was surprisingly good given the warm weather and I almost made it to the top of the 15 foot wall more than once.
Sunday was the best of the two days. Sunny and warm. Temps in the 60’s during the morning and accordingly the Killington snow report, in the 70’s during the afternoon. Definitely t-shirt weather. The surface condition was snow in most places, bare in others. And there was also the occasional water puddle. My favorite part of the day was smashing through soft bumps and face spraying myself with snow.
I got 32 days on the slopes and Melanie made her record high of 27 days spread over a long, 5 month season. Somehow Melanie and I missed the powder all season. I felt like I was riding the same stuff all season, be it in Whistler or Killington. But this weekend reminded me how much fun snowboarding is. And it left me wanting more. I can’t think of a better way to end the season.
New Robot Food Teaser Video
The robots at Robot Food have just released a new teaser video for their next video available September 2003.
New photos online
Photos from Dave’s visit and Easter weekend in Killington on online in the Gallery. Enjoy.